Feminist Frequency Radio

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FFR 279: Strictly Ballroom Oct 16, 2026

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It was tough to pick which Baz Luhrmann movie to include in our Summer "Camp" season, but ultimately went back to the beginning, with his 1992 filmmaking debut. And right out the gate, his style is already so well-defined. Throwing sequined spaghetti at the walls, he combines classic sports movie tropes with mockumentary and melodrama to make something that lets you completely in on the joke and still wins you over at the end.

Discussed in this episode: Baz waylaid by a TikToker, the comedic figure skating docuseries I Have Nothing, "Tan with You" from RPDR S7, Baz DJing

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FFR 278: What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? Sep 30, 2026

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In which Kat mistakenly says "Joan Collins" a bunch of times, instead of Joan Crawford. We knew that our Summer "Camp" series needed to include a hagsploitation film. So we revisited this famously-fraught 1962 psychological thriller starring Crawford and Bette Davis. It's campy, but it's also a darkly serious horror movie, and the play between those tones is super effective.

Discussed in this episode:

The RuPaul's Drag Race shequel "Wha' Ha' Happened to Baby JJ?"
FFR's 2019 episode on this film—Anita, Ebony, and Carolyn discussing child stardom onscreen

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NEW: katexmachina.substack.com
letterboxd.com/katexmachina

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FFR Bonus: Showgirls Sep 15, 2026

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We're halfway through our season of Summer "Camp," and it was a treat to revisit Paul Verhoeven's controversial camp classic Showgirls. The full episode is a special bonus for upper-level Patreon supporters, but also available as a one-off purchase for non-subscribers. Listen to the full episode HERE.

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FFR 277: But I'm a Cheerleader Sep 03, 2026

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In the canon of "camp" cinema, there are so many examples of movies that are queer-coded, so we wanted to make sure we focused on a textually-gay example of the genre. Nothing nails it better than Jamie Babbit's 1999 satire But I'm a Cheerleader. Natasha Lyonne stars in this portrait of a conversion therapy camp that uses stylistic exaggeration to remind us that policing of heteronormativity is something we all grew up with.

Discussed in this episode:

Chasing Chasing Amy
Gay panic on Kath & Kim
The documentary This Film Is Not Yet Rated
Ivy Nelson's essay about Polly Pocket imagery in this film for Bright Wall/Dark Room
Lucas Hedges hanging out with Tommy Dorfman in those huge boots

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FFR 276: Batman Forever Aug 27, 2026

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This season's focus on "camp" cinema had to bring us to Joel Schumacher's 1995 film Batman Forever. From Val Kilmer's rubber nipples to Jim Carrey's unsanctioned buffoonery, there's so much of an aesthetic sensibility that it's a perfect example of superhero camp. AC had never seen this movie before, and his life could have been so different if he'd grown up with it. Plus, Kat comes up with a game about all the awards that this movie lost.

What do you think? Should we do another episode so AC can watch Batman & Robin?

Discussed in this episode: Our episode from last year's "Musical Mayhem" season about Schumacher's The Phantom of the Opera (2004)

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FFR 275: Hairspray (2007) Aug 12, 2026

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One question we wanted to ask in our Summer "Camp" season was: does a remake add or remove layers of camp? Especially when it's one of John Waters' best-known films that's moved to the mainstream with a musical adaptation turned Hollywood. Does the overall cartoonishness of Tracy Turnblad's world flatten all of the story's core messages about society? We tied ourselves in knots talking about it... and of course, the casting choice of John Travolta.

Discussed in this episode: @jencapella's Hollywood Handsome Man Chart

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FFR 274: Barbarella Jul 29, 2026

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Welcome to our new season: Summer "Camp"! What better film to kick off these episodes with than Roger Vadim's 1968 space romp Barbarella. It's a perfect example of a movie that succeeds in its aesthetic endeavors, but isn't enough of a good sum of its parts to be considered well-made. What we can't deny is that none of it works without Jane Fonda's commitment to the optimistic naïveté of the character. We also talk about the difficulty of appreciating a film that had a troubled production, often affecting lead actresses. And A.C. poses the question: could Sydney Sweeney (potentially starring in a Barbarella remake) ever be camp?

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Season Preview: Summer "Camp" Jul 23, 2026

Show notes

Before we dive into our brand new season all about camp cinema classics, we had to reacquaint ourselves with the aesthetic sensibility at the heart of the style. So, we re-read and discussed Susan Sontag's 1964 essay Notes on "Camp." Of course, we digressed into the 2019 Met Gala, Kat's personal history with James Charles (yikes), and the economics of film production. Do we totally nail our understanding of what fits the definition? Time will tell as the season unfolds...

Discussed in this episode:

That time a man-on-the-street interviewer encountered Baz Luhrmann
Lars von Trier and Jørgen Leth's The Five Obstructions

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FFR 273: The Wedding Banquet (2025) Apr 02, 2026

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A.C. and Kat experienced Andrew Ahn's remake of The Wedding Banquet across somewhat of a generational divide. He finds it relies on a millennial aesthetic portrayal of queer identity, with inauthentic politics. She (who watched it with Gen X family members) thought it was sweeter and more satisfying than he did. But, having also seen Ang Lee's 1993 original, Kat thinks the movies might be trying to accomplish two different things. Overall, we both wanted higher stakes and a lot more of the incredible maternal characters played by Youn Yuh-jung and Joan Chen.

Discussed in this episode:

Plugged In's review
This meme that made A.C. think of the shack two of this movie's characters live in
Our 2024 episode about Pedro Almodóvar's short film Strange Way of Life starring Pedro Pascal and Ethan Hawke
The "Driver's Ed" sketch from I Think You Should Leave, featuring Patti Harrison
Kat's essay about Twin Peaks
Justinian Huang's novel Lucky Seed

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FFR 272: Crooklyn Mar 25, 2026

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It was an absolute joy to spend time in the world of Spike Lee's 1994 bildungsroman Crooklyn. Co-written by Lee and his siblings Joie and Cinqué, the film follows nine-year-old Troy navigating herself, her neighborhood, and her extended family in 1973. We're refreshed to see Lee's rich visual language as the backdrop for a young girl as the hero of the story of growing up. Especially when so many other auteur's attempts at this have left us feeling unimpressed. It's a messy movie, sure, but beautifully shot by Arthur Jafa (Daughters of the Dust) with knockout performances from the kids to the parents—played by Alfre Woodard and Delroy Lindo.

Discussed in this episode: Common Sense Media's Crooklyn review, RuPaul's Starrbooty

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